The brutal cold of Sweden’s winters is well documented, but Stockholm has a knack for bringing some special magic even to its gloomiest season. The city, located just 500 miles south of the Arctic Circle, enjoys as little as six hours of daylight during the bleakest months, with the peak of darkness occurring at the winter solstice on December 21—and it’s no coincidence that this is when Stockholm fills with fairy-lit streets and cozy dining rooms illuminated with candles and roaring fireplaces.
Add a whole host of invigorating winter activities, from ice-skating on frozen lakes to plunging through holes drilled in the frozen Baltic Sea, and you’ll see why many Swedes claim this as their favorite time of year. “Winter is a time to hunker down, cook and play vinyl records; to wear something cozy and breathe the crisp outdoor air; to heat up the sauna, cut a hole in the ice, and—well, don’t even get me started on how much I love cold-water plunges!” exclaims Hanna Oscarsson, the creative director at Stockholm’s most celebrated cocktail bar, Röda Huset.
“Cooling off on a hot summer day is wonderful too, of course,” she continues. “But winter dips are like a deep breath to reset the constant, hectic pace of modern life.”
Nowhere does cozy like Sweden—so much so that they even have a special word for it. Mys is Swedish for that feeling you get when you curl up under a soft blanket on a deep-cushioned sofa next to a fireplace, your hands wrapped around a giant cup of hot chocolate, or when you wrap up in your thickest knits and mittens and head out for a bracing walk along winter-lit streets, a soft dusting of snow creaking under your boots.
It’s not entirely unrelated to what the Danes
It’s not entirely unrelated to what the Danes call hygge—but where hygge has hardened into an international lifestyle aesthetic, mys remains purely a state of mind. I grew up in Sweden and toughed it out for 20-or-so years until the darkness got the better of me, prompting me to move to Barcelona and never look back. So imagine my surprise earlier this year, when my feed suddenly filled with Swedish “coolcations”, as the whole of southern Europe fled north to escape the stifling heat.
“That’s cool,” I thought to myself, but you don’t really know Sweden until you’ve tasted the cold. So grab your furriest coat and woolliest hat, because when it comes to winter wonderlands, nowhere does it quite like Stockholm. Where to Stay
Lydmar Hotel
Imagine jetting off to Stockholm to visit your art collector pals in their private waterfront residence. If an invite from said friends doesn’t come through, a stay at Lydmar Hotel is the next best thing.
Part hotel, part gallery, the 46-room property is home to one of the largest, privately owned fine-art photographic collections in the Swedish capital. Each of the plushly upholstered rooms—some of which enjoy unobstructed views of the Stockholm waterfront all the way to the Royal Palace—has its own vibe, brought to life through a curated blend of photography, artworks and bespoke furniture.
Expect plenty of mys-filled nooks designed for curling
Expect plenty of mys-filled nooks designed for curling up with a book while gazing at your favorite artwork. Bank Hotel
When a hotel set in a former bank names its main dining room Bonnie’s (a tribute to legendary outlaw Bonnie Parker), you know you’re in for a good time. Guests at Bank can warm their cockles at nearby Sturebadet, a beautiful Moorish-inspired Art Nouveau bathhouse and sauna complex (access is included for suite guests while others enjoy preferential rates), before whiling away their evenings in the hotel’s Papillon cocktail lounge, a sultry, wood-paneled affair serving warming Old Fashioneds and Negronis.
Spacious rooms come with soft slippers for keeping cozy on icy nights. Ellery Beach House
Set on the easternmost tip of the well-to-do island of Lidingö (one of the 14 islands that make up the city of Stockholm), Ellery Beach House is a former IBM conference center-turned-Palm-Springs-inspired seaside fun palace. If toasty saunas and invigorating sea dunks are your poison, you’ll be in your element in the hotel’s four heated pools and two saunas, one of which is set right on the edge of the Baltic Sea—ideal for defrosting after a glacial plunge.
There are countless other activities on offer, from padel to cornhole or boules, to sipping cocktails under a blanket in the firepit-heated relaxation room. Where to Eat and Drink
Ekstedt
Swedish chef Niklas Ekstedt uses only natural heat, soot, ash, smoke, and fire to prepare the tasting menu at his eponymous Michelin-starred restaurant. This is a meal that will stay with you long after you’ve trudged home through the snowy streets, frost-nipped gloved fingertips in pockets and earlobes tucked under woolly hats.
You’ll sample the first courses, such
You’ll sample the first courses, such as the Swedish caast-iron flatbread in the snug, flame-heated kitchen, before being led to a table for the mains, which include a sublime confit North Sea langoustine, like a smaller, firmer lobster, infused with rose and lingonberries. Flickorna Helin
Nowhere does mys like this comfy café set in a castle-like structure built for the 1897 Stockholm World’s Fair
It makes a perfect stop for oversized cups of tea and fresh-baked cinnamon rolls in front of the crackling fireplace after a bracing walk along the Djurgården shoreline, past the Kärleksudden (Lovers’ Point) observation deck with its breathtaking views. Operabaren Bakfickan
Where better to sample a Swedish classic than this low-lit space tucked alongside the Stockholm Opera House?
Bakfickan (the back pocket) is an intimate, 28-seater restaurant that serves Swedish comfort food, or husmanskost, including their best-selling meatballs with all the customary accoutrements: creamy gravy, potato purée, lingonberries, and pickled cucumber. Röda Huset
The name Röda Huset (red house) conjures images of a red-painted cottage deep in the Swedish countryside, but this particular house is as urban as it gets, with its bright crimson façade overlooking Sergels Torg, Stockholm’s most central square.
The moodily lit top floor is home
The moodily lit top floor is home to an award-winning cocktail lounge, where drinks are laced with hyperlocal Scandina the Baltic island of Gotland or a tart, green tomato-flavored Dry Martini. What to Do
Stroll down Söder
Stockholm’s southside, or Södermalm (Söder for short), was once an impoverished district where affordable homes were built for factory workers
These days, it’s best known for its laid-back, unbothered vibe, lively bars, and hip stores. It’s where Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård grew up and where you’ll often spot him casually hanging out with friends when he’s in town. Start at Nytorget and wander through the trendy SoFo district, where you can marvel at the Christmas lights and the elegant Nordic Classicism buildings.
Once you reach Mariatorget, climb the hill to Monteliusgatan Street where you’ll be treated to one of the most magnificent aerial views across the frozen waters of Riddarfjärden to the snow-dusted rooftops of Stockholm City Hall. Shop local designs
Staying in Söder, the area around Nytorget is full of chic boutiques like the 6/5/4 clothing and concept store and menswear brand A Day’s March (to help you perfect that effortlessly cool Skarsgård look).
Don’t miss interior design mecca Tambur, where you
Don’t miss interior design mecca Tambur, where you can invest in some mys of your own, like cozy wool throws and charcoal-scented candles. Meanwhile, Hornsgatan is home to the Slow Fashion District, a collection of some 20 stores selling vintage, second-hand, upcycled and sustainable fashions, as well as skincare and homewares. Reenergize in the great outdoors
Swedes love to tell you “there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing”—and winter is the time to prove them right as you bundle up and get your outdoor mys on.
It takes a cold winter for Stockholm’s waterways to freeze over, but when they do, they fill with ice skaters from families teaching their little ones to stay upright to hardcore long-distance skaters. If open water ice-skating is too adventurous, there’s also a public rink in central Stockholm at Kungsträdgården. Meanwhile, winter kayaking is an exhilarating option for milder winters.
Saunas are as beloved here as they are in Finland, but scoring a membership at one of Stockholm’s private sauna clubs is like getting an audience with His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf. This year saw the launch of Stockholm’s first-ever public sauna, Bastun Tanto: a photogenic, verdigris-green floating pontoon set on the fashionable Hornstull waterfront that offers icy plunges and steamy warm-ups all winter long (with slots bookable 30 days in advance).
Source: www.vogue.com
